Snape & Sirius

[ftah3]

No: HPFGUIDX 31480

> Lipglossusa wrote:
> 
> > So my question is-- Why hasn't Snape told anyone that Sirius is 
an 
> > Animagus?  Why hasn't he tried to confiscate the Marauder's Map 
> > since?  And why, at the end of GoF in the infirmiry, does he 
> express 
> > surprise when the black dog turns into Sirius, since he already 
> > really knows that Sirius is an Animgas?

Cindy responded:
> So perhaps the answer to why Snape doesn't tell Fudge that Sirius 
is 
> some (unknown) type of animagus is simply that Snape does not 
believe 
> what he hears.  He thinks Lupin and Sirius are confunding the kids, 
> so the whole werewolf days/animagus story is a hoax.  <snip>
> Also, consider this.  If Snape is willing to believe that Sirius is 
> an animagus, then he also has to accept that Peter is an animagus.  
> This supports Sirius' story, and Snape being the wicked, evil half-
> dementor that he is, would *never* want to believe anything that 
> might prove that Sirius is telling the truth and does not deserve 
to 
> die. 

I think Cindy's is a very good explanation.  The desire to disbelieve 
on principal is a strong one.

One question: did Snape *really* believe the kids were confunded?  I 
got the impression, in the Shack, that he was really and truly 
p.o.'ed at Harry & Co. for (as he saw it) being their usual 
delinquent selves, for not thanking him for 'saving' them, and for 
being such incredible morons as to believe Lupin/Black.  I hadn't 
considered that he'd changed his mind on that, and explained it away 
as confunding.  For some reason, I had just interpreted that 
confunding bit as glossing-over on Snape's part ~ on one hand, it 
would be difficult (and rather pointless) to try to get Harry Potter 
in trouble for aiding Sirius Black, because who would believe him?  
On the other hand, it makes Snape's part in the matter all that more 
heroic, for him to have saved those kids not just from Black, but 
also from horrible terrible mind control!  :-P  I guess it can be 
interpreted either way ~ maybe he believed they were confunded, or 
not.

Another option, if he did, in fact believe that Black was an 
animagus, he might not have told Fudge because it was a moot point by 
then.  I.e., Black was under lock and key, and due to be 'kissed' 
asap, so who cares that he's an animagus? 

Alternatively, who *did* he speak to first, Fudge or Dumbledore?  
And, who's idea was it to lock Black in Flitwick's office?  And how 
long did it take for Harry to come to after being brought to the 
infirmary?  What if Snape ends up hooking up with Dumbledore first, 
they lock Black in Flitwick's office, he tells Dumbledore the story 
(Black is an animagus, Lupin was helping him, they've concocted a 
cockamamie story about Pettigrew being the actual traitor and Harry 
and Co. believed it).  Dumbledore mulls this briefly, wonders if 
everyone was wrong about Black, decides to ask Black about it, and 
says, By the way, Severus, that business about Black being an 
animagus ~ that's neither here nor there, do me a favor and don't 
mention it to Fudge, right?  

*shrug*  I dunno.

Moving on to why he was surprised when the big dog turned into Black 
~ maybe he was just surprised that *that* big black dog, right there, 
sitting otherwise unobtrusively to the side, was Sirius Black!  Snape 
didn't know what form Black takes (did he?), and had no reason to 
think that the dog was anything other than a dog, right up to the 
point he transforms.  So, surprise!  :*)

Anyway, I'm talking myself in circles, so I'll stop now.  %-p

Mahoney